Wedding Proposals: TV Edition

We witness our treasured and most beloved characters on television fall in love, fall out of love and finally, when they make that pivotal decision to propose, we are able to understand their mentality and the steps they took to arrive at that situation. The undeniable thrill and you feel in your chest can hardly settle, as they propose in their own distinctive ways, particular to each individual and of course unique to their own love story.

Some opt for the elaborate: a complicated, confusing, almost absurd way of proposing that can only be pulled off in scripted form through the magic on television. It is the kind of proposal that required a certain level of deviousness intertwined with creativity to achieve. Barney Stinson from How I Met Your Mother is one such character. The womanizer proved to us that he was capable of loving and being committed to Robin Scherbatsky with a 16 step proposal plan spanning months involving trickery and deceit- not exactly a solid foundation to a marriage eh? It even included another marriage proposal to Robin’s workplace foe. Who could deny his sincerity though, when he finally presented his proposal manual aptly titled ‘The Robin’ to Robin on a snow clad rooftop of her favourite building? From straight up telling Robin to seal any possible romantic pursuits with him, to a 180-degree turnabout of going down on his knee to ask for her hand in marriage, you must applaud Barney Stinson- although scheming, he was dedicated. By executing such a plan, he gained the permission of his best friend Ted Mosby who had an on off romance with Robin, to go ahead with his proposal, and even burned his ‘Playbook’ his companion for scoring with the ladies. Although certainly unconventional, it leaves us with a bittersweet aftertaste; love comes in all forms indeed.

There seems to be an affinity with candles and onscreen proposals. Michael Scott from The Office executed one of the most touching, quirky proposals to his workplace love interest, Holly Flak. He walked her through every nook and cranny of the Dundler Miffin office, eventually leading her into the break room where every employee stood in line while holding candles and asking Holly, ‘Will you marry me?’ while she politely declined, gradually starting to understand the situation. Right at her work desk, surrounded by lit candles, dramatic timing occurred, when the water sprinklers turn on, caused by the flames of course. The sudden downpour creates a more poignant setting. The summation of their relationship comes in the way Michael asked ‘Holly Flak, marry me will you be?’ in classic Yoda style, to which Holly replied, ‘Your wife becoming will be I’. Amidst the water sprinkler-rain, celebrating the proposal, you can’t tell the tears apart.

Monica and Chandler from Friends followed a similar setting; the apartment drenched in candlelight, candles dripping with wax on the counter, on the tables, complementing the suspense that comes with waiting to pop the question. And when Monica finally did, she could not find the words to continue, ‘There’s a reason why girls don’t do this!’ she cried, they both went on their knees with Chandler finishing what Monica started. Their tearful engagement encircled by candles was both sentimental and picturesque. It seems that proposal by candlelight will guarantee a 100% success rate.

Leslie Knope, proven to be unlucky-in-love time after time, finally got her big break when Ben Wyatt, her long time boyfriend surprised her by going down on one knee. Their relationship advanced from hostile, to progressively friendly, finally to attraction. Yet another workplace romance, the couple was forced to break up, but they eventually found their way back to each other, with Ben choosing Leslie over his job to run a congressional campaign, and returning to Pawnee, all the way from Washington D.C. To Leslie’s surprise, Ben popped the question, the encounter proved to be shocking for Leslie who took awhile to respond, and she did.

What better place to propose to your beloved than in an elevator at the hospital you both work at? Not just any elevator, but one plastered with documents and images of your relationships both professionally and personally. Dr Shepard, neurosurgeon at Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital, detailed to Dr Grey every medical venture the two have been on together, and reminisced upon the memories they share while working on their projects. Derek, while gazing right into Meredith‘s eyes professes at the end, ‘I love you Meredith Grey, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.’ Doctors sure do it differently.

While television exhibits various forms of proposals, from the extravagant to the most basic and simplest, one thing remains constant. However you decide to carry out your proposal, the heart of it comes from your declaration, the most intimate and personal one you will ever profess. The setting wouldn’t matter, nor would you remember your outfit during it. Your words, bare and unguarded present love at its most natural state. So take in the moment, embrace the vulnerability in that second before you (or your other half) utter the single most life-defining word in the dictionary- yes.